A Different Light - Mark Bishop - CD Review

Mark Bishop released A Different Light last month. Mark has become known as much for his prolific songwriting as his singing. This project showcases both with him being the writer of all 11 songs.

Normally with a solo project, there's a struggle for variety, but that's not the case with this project. I like how songs are different styles within the project.

Mark also has a few other guests join him with his brother Kenny singing with him on "He's Always Been a Friend." Chris Freeman joins him on "Couldn't Feel Any Better." I think their voices are great complements to each other. This is a fun toe-tapping song that is just one of those feel good songs.

"Finish Well, Finish Strong, Finish Empty" is a fun uptempo song that talks about how Christ gave everything for us so we should dedicate our lives to Him. This song almost comes across as a quartet number with the Kingdom Heirs joining him on the song.

The first single is "The Refrigerator Door." I'll be honest when I saw a song with that title, I wanted to immediately skip to that track to see what that song was going to be about. This actually the first single off the project. I love the message and the parallels this song makes. It paints beautiful pictures that will no doubt bring scenes from listeners' childhoods to their minds.

I love the choir backing him up on "God Is Powerful." This more progressive sounding song is definitely a standout track! "More Than Enough," the opening track, also has a little bit more of that progressive feel with great orchestration behind it. It also has a bit of a choir feel backing him up.

One of my favorites was "What It Comes Down To Is Me." It's an incredible reminder of how Jesus' blood reaches down to cover us. Jesus' sacrifice was real and personal for each of us.

I think this is one of Mark's best projects in recent years.

Songs to put on repeat - "Finish Well, Finish Strong, Finish Empty"
Song to give a second listen - "What It Comes Down To Is Me"
Song to turn up - "God Is Powerful" and "Couldn't Feel Any Better"


Song List -
1. "More Than Enough"
2. "I'm In Good Hands"
3. "Finish Well, Finish Strong, Finish Empty"
4. "He's Always Been a Friend"
5. "God Is Powerful"
6. "The Refrigerator Door"
7. "What It Comes Down To Is Me"
8. "Tell Me You Saw Me"
9. "Couldn't Feel Any Better"
10. "Fly, Fly Away Little Birdie"
11. "I'm Gonna Wish I Had Worried Less"

In Case You Missed It - News and Tidbits - March 17

Here are some recent news items in Southern Gospel -

• Prayers go out to the family of Hubert Cooke who passed away on March 12. A graveside service was held on Wednesday.
• Congratulations to Les and Frances Beasley who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this week!
• The Gospel Greats will be celebrating its 2,000th program. The show has spanned over 38 years.

Anything I've missed?

Experiencing the Peace of God - The Perrys - Concert Recap

When I saw that the Perrys were booked in Little Rock at the end of February, I of course put it on my calendar. I didn't realize then how the group would change over the weeks before then, how their world would be shaken with the death of patriarch Tracy Stuffle. When I got there that night, I knew it would be different seeing them again. I just didn't realize the kind of different. But when people have gone through a major loss and can stand on stage and proclaim the name of Jesus and how faithful He is, it's a special kind of worship. The hurt is fresh, but their love and dedication to God hasn't wavered. You can tell that every song maybe means even more than before. Every word that is sung is felt deep down because they are living it. Sometimes in the greatest times of grief, there's the sweetest kind of worship because we can be reassured of just how good God is. That's what the Perrys showed that night.

The Perrys sang several songs from Testament. They started the night with "Let's Stop for a Moment" and also sang their latest single "Moses and Elijah." I was so glad that Troy sang his feature, "Sing in the Valley." This is such an incredible song and fits Troy perfectly. Andrew also sang "It Carried Him," another favorite from that project. Love this song!

They pulled out a few older songs like Libbi singing "Did I Mention" and "Calvary Answers for Me." Andrew does such a great job on that song. They sang several Goodman songs, "Living in Canaan Now," "I Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now" and then "God Walks the Dark Hills." It was such a sweet spirit with Libbi singing "God Walks the Dark Hills," incredible moment.

Libbi talked about their journey over the last few weeks and how she's learned more and more about the peace and sustaining grace of God. She sang "Celebrate Me Home" while they showed pictures of Tracy with family and friends. It was such a touching tribute to Tracy and a way to honor him, his memory and share with the people a little more about his passing and the journey they have been on in the weeks prior.

They planned on closing the night with "If You Knew Him," until the pastor asked for one more song, a barn-burner, so they started the track for "I Wish I Could Have Been There." It had the entire audience on its feet clapping along.

I'm so thankful for the worship that night. It was easy to see the peace that can only come from truly knowing God and walking with Him even in the hardest of times. Sometimes the sweetest worship can come during the times of greatest grief and that's what I got to witness that night.

Fun Clip Friday - Gaither Vocal Band at Billy Graham's Service

The Gaither Vocal Band had the honor of singing at Billy Graham's memorial service last week. Here's a clip of them singing "Because He Lives" just their voices and the piano. Watch it below!

An Evening With Tribute Quartet - Concert Recap

It's been a slow seasons for concerts in Arkansas this year. Thankfully a couple of weeks ago that picked up when Tribute Quartet's bus rolled into Jacksonville, Arkansas. (With concerts picking up, hopefully the blogging will too!)

These guys get better and better each time I see them. They really are one of the top quartets in the business right now. It was good to hear so many songs from Here For You, which I still contend as the best album of 2016, along with their new quartet tribute album.

Here are a few highlights of the night -

• "Everybody Come See Jesus"
• "God of the Storms" - This is one of my favorite songs they sing. I think sometimes with the songs that are midtempo or faster we can miss the beauty of the lyrics, but this song has some incredible nuggets of wordsmithing. Riley led the congregation in "The Haven of Rest" after the song. He reminded us that with Jesus we are safe ever more no matter what we are going through.
• "Every Question Will Be Answered"
• "Power in the Blood" - When Josh steps over to the piano, it's easy to see why he was voted favorite musician last year at the Absolutely Gospel Music Awards. 
• "Come On Let's Go to That Land" - Anthony does a great job on this song, and it's always a fun one to see live.
• "Grace At Its Best" - I'm so glad they staged this song that night. Gary is not only featured on this song but also co-wrote the song with Barbara Huffman. I love to hear Gary and Riley sing this song.
• "Hold On (Jesus Will Come)" and "His Tomb Is Empty" - I hadn't heard them sing either of these live before.
• "When the Prodigal Comes Home" - Riley does such an incredible job on this song. I think it's becoming one of my favorite Tribute Quartet songs. Riley started the song back a cappella after sharing about the story of the prodigal son. It was a beautiful moment and a great reminder of just how much God loves us no matter what we have done.

Thanks, Tribute Quartet, for a great night of gospel music that reminded us of God's perfect love for us and that no matter what we're facing He is right there alongside us.